Sunday, June 12, 2016

but as today's shooting in Orlando illustrates with sickening force, it's clearly past time to address this problem. When you hate someone for their race, their religion, their sexuality, or any other irrelevant characteristic, you kill a bit of them and a lot of yourself. When that hatred or mental sickness that feeds on it leads you to action, those deaths become literal.

As I wrote in the headline, I don't claim to have answers, but it's time we make it a national priority to find some. Controlling access to assault weapons strikes me as one good place to start. Making the elimination of poverty a top priority is another. Changing the way we speak so we stop making pejoratives of the characteristics of others is another important move, one that's cheap for us all.

We have to do something. We are a country under attack by itself, and we must heal ourselves.

Whatever you believe, vote for candidates who will confront these issues.

My heart breaks for the people who died and who were injured in Orlando, but that heartbreak does them absolutely no good. We must demand better of our government and of ourselves.

The problem in the UK is that although attempts are made to be inclusive certain sections of the population fail to integrate and regard informing on extremists within their communities to the authorities are being a traitor to their culture.

This one, the one in Colorado, the one in New Jersey--none of the shooters were in poverty. Sure, the large magazine autoloaders were a factor, but most of the instances would have killed as many people or more if the wacko had used a gallon of gas.

I don't have any use for assault weapons (so called; real assault weapons are select-fire), and I don't even like autoloaders; but focusing on them rather than the real cause--people who shouldn't be on their own in the community--isn't going to help.

Your focus on hate is correct. A real cure (mitigation, at least) has to address that.

the latest news does seem to suggest he had mental health issues rather than being a terrorist, but it could be argued most terrorists have mental health issue. No 'normal' person would commit most of the atrocities carried out.

I'm not sure gun control, would have prevented this issue. As David pointed out petrol is an effective weapon as are nail bombs see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Admiral_Duncan

I wonder if it's too late for gun control. The Genii is already out of the bottle.

There must be so many guns in the US that control is impossible at this stage.

We don't have a culture of guns in the UK. After a few nutter's with guns killed a few people rules were tightened.

Consequently guns in the UK are tightly controlled. Shotguns (not pump action) are the easiest to get and they still require Police checks and references. I think other types are only available illegally, probably from the former USSR via gangs and only in the larger cities.